Footage released by a west African al Qaeda affiliate shows a raid on a Togo army base, in which the outpost is taken with ease.

The government troops were apparently caught completely off guard as none of the gun trucks with mounted weapons systems appear to have been manned at the time of the attack. Reportedly, six people died in the incident.

The militant group responsible for the attack was identified as Jama'a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM). JNIM has sworn allegiance to al Qaeda which provides them with support in the form of international funding, training, weapons deliveries, and equipment.

Jihadists attacks in Togo are relatively rare, but expected to increase as Muslim militant groups march south and west out of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Nigeria.

About the Author

Will Killmore

Will Killmore is a US Army combat infantry veteran and Purple Heart recipient. He has deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan with the 172nd Stryker Brigade and 173rd Airborne Brigade. Following his time in service, he successfully pursued a certificate of journalism and has been a blogger for Funker530 since 2014. Follow Will’s bad takes on Twitter